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Ontario How Does Learning Happen? weekly planning
How Does Learning Happen weekly planning organises early childhood environments, routines, and experiences around four foundational conditions: Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement, and Expression. Rather than relying on rigid instructional checklists or predetermined academic themes, educators plan by observing children in play, documenting their questions and working theories, and preparing open-ended materials. This responsive approach supports child-led inquiry while embedding early literacy, numeracy, and collaborative reflection across each week.
At a glance
Ontario’s pedagogy for the early years provides a professional learning resource guide centred on learning through relationships. Early childhood educators use the framework to shape responsive environments, co-plan with families, and support children along a continuous learning pathway.
| Framework component | Details |
|---|---|
| Document | How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years (2014) |
| Publishing authority | Ontario Ministry of Education |
| Age range | Children from birth to 8 years of age |
| Practice settings | Child care centres, home child care, child and family programmes, and the Kindergarten programme |
| Four foundations | Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement, Expression |
| Underlying foundation | Early Learning for Every Child Today (ELECT, 2007) and its six guiding principles |
| View of the child | Competent, capable of complex thinking, curious, and rich in potential |
| View of families | Competent and capable, curious, and rich in experience; the first and most powerful influence on children |
| View of educators | Knowledgeable, caring, reflective, and resourceful professionals who act as co-learners |
The HDLH hub connects these foundations to everyday classroom practice. Rather than separating learning into isolated academic subjects, the framework invites educators to look at children holistically across Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement, and Expression.
What the framework asks of your planning
In early years settings, curriculum is the sum total of experiences, activities, and events in an inclusive environment. The Ontario Ministry of Education notes that planning does not centre on predetermined topics or narrow skill benchmarks. Instead, curriculum begins with what children know, wonder about, and investigate in their play. Educators move away from adult-chosen themes towards responsive experiences that evolve from children’s natural curiosity.
Educators plan indoor and outdoor environments as a third teacher that organises spaces, promotes relationships, and provokes inquiry. This involves providing open-ended materials that children can manipulate and combine in multiple ways. Planning also establishes daily schedules with long blocks of uninterrupted play and few transitions, sustaining a calm atmosphere. Everyday routines like mealtimes and dressing for outdoor play become valuable occasions to practise self-help and self-regulation.
Planning relies on continuous observation and pedagogical documentation rather than standard reporting. As outlined in How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years (2014), documentation is a way of listening that makes children’s thinking and learning visible. By recording how children tackle problems and formulate theories, educators uncover emergent possibilities for deeper exploration. This collaborative process invites educators to co-plan next steps alongside children rather than acting as solitary planners.
The framework explicitly states that its goals for children are not checklists of tasks or developmental benchmarks to be achieved. Similarly, the developmental continuum from ELECT is not a lock-step timetable. Assessment takes the form of critical reflection, collaborative inquiry, and ongoing discussions with families. Educators use these insights to adapt environments, adjust routines, and ensure meaningful participation for every child.
A worked example
To see how responsive planning connects to the four foundations, consider Nursery Week 9 — Friends (lesson plan), designed for Nursery (ages 3–4). The five-day plan explores relationships, similarities, differences, and cooperation through sensory invitations, shared fruit preparation, and imaginative play. You can also explore the Combined week package for accompanying materials.
| Day | What children do | Framework area or outcome it supports |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Children play a follow-me movement game, discuss who a friend is, and string pasta shapes to make friendship bracelets. In literacy, they explore the letter Gg sound and symbol with grains, glass, and glue. In numeracy, they hunt for orange items and count them together. | Belonging (forming relationships in a group) and Expression (creative materials and early literacy). |
| Day 2 | Children stretch and dance together. In pairs, they discuss similarities and differences, then fingerpaint Friendship Fishes in a shared bowl, taking turns. They sing the letter Gg phonic song, peel oranges, count the pegs, and squeeze fresh juice. | Belonging (collaborating with peers) and Well-Being (fine-motor control and self-care). |
| Day 3 | Children run a cooperative twins race in pairs. They discuss what good friends do, exchange biscuits with a partner, and listen to a friendship story. They air-trace letter Gg, trace it in sand, salt, or rice, and count items from 11 to 15. | Belonging (empathy and sharing) and Engagement (focused sensory inquiry and counting). |
| Day 4 | Children play hopscotch, then assemble Friendship Salad by combining fruit pieces representing qualities like kindness and sharing to offer friends. They trace letter Gg, paste grains along its outline, and arrange paper shape cutouts into floor patterns. | Well-Being (healthy eating practices) and Expression (representing ideas through collage and shape design). |
| Day 5 | Children navigate a movement maze on the floor. Using props, they role-play friendship scenarios, resolve social conflicts, and decorate friendship crowns for each other. They write letter Gg and mix red and yellow paint to create orange wax-resist art. | Expression (dramatic play and visual arts) and Engagement (collaborative problem-solving and colour inquiry). |
Printable tasksheets can fit alongside these active investigations as quiet, reflective options. For example, children can reflect on positive social actions with Being Kind and Caring, investigate early numeracy with Exploring Count and Colour, or practise letter formations with Tracing Letter Gg Symbols.
Supervision note: Stringing pasta, handling grains, and using sensory tracing trays require continuous adult supervision to prevent choking hazards among young children.
Food note: Always verify food allergies and dietary needs with families before children prepare, handle, or taste fruits, biscuits, or other snacks, ensuring all ingredients remain nut-free.
Planning template
| Day | Focus area | Activity | Resources | What to observe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | ||||
| Day 2 | ||||
| Day 3 | ||||
| Day 4 | ||||
| Day 5 |
To fill in this template, identify which foundation—Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement, or Expression—aligns with the children’s current play interests and emerging inquiries. List open-ended materials and responsive experiences in the activity and resources columns, preserving large blocks of uninterrupted time for exploration. Use the final column to record children’s questions, verbal comments, and interactions so your observations directly shape the subsequent week.
Questions teachers ask
How do I write weekly plans without traditional themes?
Start by observing what children are doing, testing, and wondering about during child-directed play. Instead of selecting an arbitrary theme like transport or seasons, note the specific problems children explore, such as how ramps change speed or how friends share space. Plan materials, conversations, and outdoor invitations around those observed questions, using the four foundations as a guide to nurture belonging, well-being, engagement, and expression.
How does pedagogical documentation differ from developmental checklists?
Pedagogical documentation goes beyond checking off milestones or recording behaviour objectively. Checklists monitor whether a child meets a predetermined standard, whereas documentation seeks to understand how children think, communicate, and formulate working theories. By collecting photographs, children’s dialogue, and artistic representations, educators make thinking visible. This material is then revisited with children and families to interpret meaning and co-plan further investigations.
Can I still use worksheets in an inquiry-based programme?
Worksheets can support individual learning when offered as open invitations rather than compulsory whole-group tasks. In a play-based Ontario early years environment, tasksheets function best at tabletop learning centres where children choose to explore letter symbols, numbers, or colouring at their own pace. They complement rich sensory experiences and conversations without replacing child-led exploration or active physical movement.
Sources and printables
- How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years (2014) — the official provincial pedagogy from the Ontario Ministry of Education.
- The HDLH hub — an overview of planning across Ontario early childhood settings.
- Foundation guides for Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement, and Expression — practical guidance for each condition.
- Nursery Week 9 — Friends (lesson plan) and the Combined week package — sample resources exploring friendship through play.
- Browse the library — the full collection of Superbuddy lesson plans, printables, and curriculum packages.